Lebanese Officials to Meet for Fourth Day of Talks in Washington, Embassy Says

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it has carried out strikes on Iran in response to Thursday's Iranian attack on a vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Iran shot "at least four One Way Attack Drones" at ships transiting the strait, describing the incident as a "foolish violation of our Ceasefire Agreement."

Trump then hinted at a U.S. response to the strikes, adding that he "doesn't like" that the Iranians "took a shot."

On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz. The United Nations' shipping agency said it has paused its evacuation plan in the Strait until further clarity is reached regarding the attack.

U.S. President Donald Trump said about Iran's drone attack in the Strait of Hormuz that he "doesn't like that they took a shot" and hinted at a U.S. response to the strikes.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing two senior U.S. officials. The United Nations' shipping agency said it has paused its evacuation plan in the Strait until further clarity is reached regarding the attack.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke on the framework agreement between the United States, Israel and Lebanon, pledging financial, military and humanitarian support for Lebanon.

He said that the agreement maintains that the three create a trilateral group that would coordinate militarily between all sides to implement the framework, adding that the United States will "remain fully engaged and commit significant resources, including an immediate $100 million in humanitarian assistance in coordination with the UN."

The secretary also pledged $30 million worth of American support to the Lebanese army, designated for improving the Lebanese Army's military capabilities, to allow it to "more effectively establish sovereignty throughout Lebanese territory."

Rubio remarked that the signing "marks another major milestone in President [Donald] Trump's effort to bring lasting peace and stability to the region."

He said the framework agreed to by both parties "establishes a clear and structured process to restore Lebanon's sovereignty, disarm Hezbollah and dismantle its terrorist infrastructure, and enable Israel to return to its borders once that threat to its citizens is removed."

President Joseph Aoun addressed the American administration, headed by President Donald Trump, and thanked him for the efforts he invested in hosting the negotiations, for his patronage and support for Lebanon's position, which led to the step announced today, the Lebanese Presidency said in a post on X.

توجه الرئيس جوزاف عون الى الادارة الاميركية وعلى رأسها الرئيس دونالد ترامب، بالشكر على ما بذل من جهود في استضافة المفاوضات ورعايتها ودعم موقف لبنان للوصول إلى الخطوة التي أعلنت اليوم. كما شكر جميع الدول الشقيقة والصديقة التي رافقتنا خلال هذه المفاوضات الصعبة، داعمة مواقف الدولة

He also thanked the Lebanese people for their sacrifices and their perseverance through destruction and displacement, saying that the "framework signed today is the first step toward realizing their sacrifices," so that they return to their fully liberated land "free, dignified, and with their heads held high, under the sovereignty of a Lebanese state that has no partner in its sovereignty over its land and people."

Hezbollah lawmaker ‌Hassan Fadlallah ‌said Lebanese authorities would not ⁠be able to ⁠enforce a framework agreement signed with Israel in Washington on Friday unless, with ‌U.S. support, "they go ‌to civil war," Al Mayadeen reported on Friday, after talks aimed at ending fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed group.

Fadlallah ⁠said that the Lebanese government had given "a gift to the Israeli enemy," but that this would have no practical effects on the ground. Hezbollah would confront any measure taken ‌by Lebanese ⁠authorities and ‌would hold on to its weapons even ⁠more, adding that group's opposition was "serious" and would not allow authorities ‌to implement their commitments on the ⁠ground.

However, he stressed that Hezbollah is not interested in a confrontation with the Lebanese army, saying: "The army will remain, the resistance will remain, and the people will remain."

Fadlallah cleaimed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "negotiated with himself," because, according to him, the Lebanese government "lacks constitutional and national legitimacy and does not possess the tools to impose dictates on the Lebanese people."

He further claimed that the move in Washington was intended to disrupt the path that began in Islamabad, adding that "nothing will pass without the resistance." According to him, the decisive factor is what is happening on the ground, since "we hold the ground and we are the people of the country."

Referring to Iran, he said that its position is clear and that it will not sign any agreement before an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

He also claimed that direct contacts with Israel are contrary to Article 52 of the Lebanese constitution, and that no one has the authority to cancel the state of hostility towards Israel. According to him, "Whoever shakes the hand of the enemy is an accomplice in his crimes."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that, according to the framework agreement signed by the United States, Israel and Lebanon, the Israeli army will continue to remain in the vast majority of the "buffer zone" it holds in southern Lebanon.

He added that Israel and Lebanon had agreed on two areas where a pilot program would be carried out to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure and transfer control of the territory to the Lebanese army.

According to Netanyahu, the IDF recommended the two areas: one located south of the Litani River, which is outside Israeli-held territory, and the other, north of the Litani, which also includes "a small part of the expanded security zone."

According to an Israeli political source, the United States is expected to oversee the Lebanese army's activities in the agreed pilot areas.

The prime minister described the signing of the framework agreement as a "major blow" to Iran. "Iran is trying to force us, by means of force, to withdraw from southern Lebanon. In effect, Israel, Lebanon and the United States are telling them: this is none of your business. You have no role in Lebanon," he said.

Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement on Friday, after four days of negotiations mediated by the United States, with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying that "there is still a lot of work ahead of us."

Israel and Lebanon are expected to sign a framework agreement between the two countries, an Israeli official said, after four days of negotiations mediated by the United States.

The talks, attended by embassy and military representatives, were scheduled to take place over three days and focus on cease-fire terms between Israel and Hezbollah and the redeployment of the Lebanese Army in southern Lebanon, concurrent to an Israeli military withdrawal from territories it currently holds in southern Lebanon.

However, the talks were extended by an additional day on Thursday. A regional source told Haaretz that the delay in talks between Israel and Lebanon stems from disagreements over the proposed pilot zones from which Israel is expected to withdraw. According to the source, the sides were presented with a map, but neither side has validated it.